Man earns living collecting tamarind fruit in HCM City

Quynh Quyet Nghi, 53, has earned his living by picking tamarind fruit on HCM City’s streets for the past 15 years.

Nghi used to work as a farmer, construction worker, and scrap metal collector before taking this work.

"When I lived in Nha Trang City as a boy, I used to follow many local people there to collect tamarind fruit to sell and earn money," he said. "I'm good at climbing and I also find joy in this work. It gives me a feeling of freedom."

Nghi is referred to as a jungle man due to his good climbing skills. With just a long cane in one hand and a big bag fastened onto his back, Nghi climbs big tall trees to pick the fruit.

When Nghi is on a tree, his wife, Tran Thi Van, waits at the tree foot to get the fruits and tie them into small bunches for selling.

"He's very good at climbing, but this has become hard work for him at his age," the wife said. "I feel a bit worried when seeing him climbing some high trees. He had a fall from a tree two weeks ago and sprained one of his feet."

The couple then sell the fruit on the street. They earn between VND400,000-500,000 a day which Nghi said enough for them to live modestly in the city.

"We have tamarind fruit all year round so we can live well from this work," he said.

In the evening, the couple return to Nguyen Huu Canh Street in Binh Thanh District where they sleep on the pavement.

"We have considered this pavement our home for several years," Nghi said. "The pavement here is clean and wide and has good light so we feel safe when spending our nights here."